As a Cape Air alum (left within the past 3 years) watching the path Cape Air is headed down has been disheartening. I hesitate to write this, as I don't want to be "that guy" to come back after leaving and preach about how great it was "back in my day". However, the stories I've heard from friends there in regards to their treatment, makes me feel the need speak up and provide some perspective.
Nearly ten years ago I discovered Cape Air through this website. What set it apart wasn't just the chance to have fun, diverse flying in the Northeast or Caribbean, but the way they treated their employees. In an era of low regional salaries and poor treatment, Cape Air wasn't glamorous flying, but it was "real" flying at a company that would treat you with dignity, respect, and ultimately do the right thing.
During the recession while many airlines were furloughing, I was fortunate enough to be a First Officer intern, splitting time between flying the line and working in the office. Getting paid to fly was a great experience. As an intern working in the office, I was given the opportunity to demonstrate what I was capable of doing from day one. I did my fair share of stapling and stuffing envelopes, but I was also able to work on some great projects that truly helped make the airline better.
As I watched furloughed pilots from Expressjet, NetJets, Tower Air, Air Tran, etc. interviewing for a handful of pilot positions, I realized I was fortunate to work for an airline that in tough times was actually growing an airline that treated passengers and employees well and paid what was a fair wage for the time.
That feeling of being valued by the people I worked with every day for my hard work and dedication to the company was a powerful feeling I haven't had to that degree in my career since.
Fast forward past a few years of CFIing to flying at Cape Air as an FO and a Captain. I was based and TDY'd in every region besides Guam. Pre contract and Post contract. I worked with great pilots, ramp agents, gate agents, station managers, etc. in every region. Although each region also had it's "characters" to put it nicely, most of the pilots I worked with were great people.
Underneath the veil of MOCHA HAGOTDI, I began to notice a few disturbing trends.
There was an undercurrent of resentment amongst some pilots in the Northeast that came to the surface during the time the first contract was being introduced to the pilot group. To provide some context: Caribbean pilots received a $3/hr override as well as 40hr/week minimum and better work rules as dictated by the Puerto Rican and VI governments (time and a half after 8 hrs in a day vs. after 40 hours in a week stateside). The override and benefits compensated for the extra expense of life in the Caribbean (nearly $5/ gallon gas, $8/gallon milk). The new contract traded those pay and work rule benefits for an increase in weekly minimum stateside from 35 to 40 hours per week. Unless you were very senior, you were probably working greater than 40 hours per week anyways, so the benefit was minimal. Pay rates were proposed to increase the same percentage as union dues.
Naturally, the Caribbean pilots were not happy about this. Meanwhile, some Northeast pilots were openly trashing their fellow pilots for wanting to maintain their pay and benefits. Comments about spoiled Caribbean pilots on the beach getting paid to hardly work were common to hear in the BOS crew room.
The attitudes towards pilots in the Midwest were no better. Unless you were flying a legacy Cape Air route, many senior pilots didn't see you as a "real" Cape Air pilot. If you had a concern or needed help from the union, a couple hard working stewards were your only point of contact for any real help. Union leadership rarely visited the region if ever. I watched pilots concerns expressed to the Union get brushed aside with a response along the lines of "shut up and color".
To be fair, similar attitudes began to develop back at headquarters in HYA. Before Montana was opened, several pilots expressed concerns to management about housing availability in locations like Sydney, MT where the oil boom had made housing costs skyrocket to become some of the most expensive in the country. Good luck to Wolf Point pilots trying to find safe and quality housing on the Ft. Peck Indian Reservation. There were employees at headquarters who didn't even know Cape Air flies to those places.
The attitude that had prevailed at headquarters was that the pilots in these far away regions would find a way to make it work. You had a relocation bonus anyways, so that was supposed to be sufficient. Thanks to the efforts of many pilots in these regions, that did work for many years. To the company's credit, they eventually got the Montana basing right and have a central BIL base now. However, the time and effort required to reach that point caused many pilots to leave earlier than they had planned and also turned away many potential pilots from applying.
The unwillingness to continue to do the right thing, even though it may have been hard or cost more money, started to show the cracks in the foundation. Raising pay and improving work rules at the regionals started around the time I left as Commutair increased first year pay to essentially match Cape Air's as well as commuter hotels and a relatively quick upgrade.
Leadership saw this trend starting years ago, yet refused to adapt to the changing industry landscape.
Up until that time, Cape Air had been growing. I watched the airline more than double in size during my time there. But pay at the regionals has increased greatly. Cape Air pay has barely kept up with inflation. Last I heard there are roughly 40% fewer 402 captains. Flights are canceling due to staffing issues. That stress is exacerbating the underlying issues that growth and proper staffing helped to cover up for years. The training contract is a band aid to cover up a larger problem.
The company has chosen to blame new FAA regulations for their staffing problems. The fact that FAA minimums for a pt 135 Captain have not changed doesn't matter. Linda appears to have her own agenda. As president of the RAA, I'm afraid she benefits more from seeing the airline shrink as the "unfortunate result of a government induced pilot shortage" instead of doing what it takes to attract and retain pilots. Perhaps the airline can't afford to pay their pilots more. Lying and blaming government regulations that don't directly affect Cape Air's 402 captain minimums is dishonest and reflects poorly on the company leadership and its culture.
In the time since I left, I have had friends witness pilots in the training department and union leadership positions ridicule others for leaving. A friend was harassed by a chief pilot for causing a staffing shortage because he had to leave for military orders. This is not the behavior of a company that cares for its employees. This is not the behavior of a united pilot group that cares for one another.
The cracks are growing and the ship is taking on water. Many of us are proud of our time at Cape Air and what we accomplished. To watch what was once a proud airline descend into mediocrity, lashing out blaming all others besides itself on its way down is painful to watch. But I'm on the outside. To my friends still at Cape Air, there's many of us who will gladly throw you a rope.
To those looking to go to Cape Air: know what you are getting into. There will be no cockpit door in a 402. You will probably fly the same or similar route every day. You will have a weak heater in the winter and no air conditioning in the summer. You will do some of the most difficult and rewarding flying of your career. You just won't do it for a company that cares.
AIRLINE
05-03-2023
